Chasing the Sun
by StarsInMasonJars
Summary: The Big Four are in high school, opposing high schools. Disney Academy, the prestigious castle on the hill, and DreamWorks-Fox High, the very laid back school in the woods, have had an age old rivalry. Will the Big Four be able to remain friends and stop the schools from tearing each other down? (on vacation)
1. First Day at Disney Academy

The first-day-at-a-new-school jitters were already getting to me, and I knew that if I didn't find some quiet place to hide and freak out in soon, I'd probably have a meltdown right there in front of the entire senior class. Everything here at Disney Academy is bright, colorful, and somewhat magical. Music plays in the hallways in between classes. The classrooms are painted in outrageous themes. No one room or hallway is identical to another. And the entire school looks like one big castle with stained-glass windows, towers, a moat, and all. Mother said the first day would be the hardest, but I don't think she had any idea exactly what this high school would be like at all.

I've been homeschooled my entire life, and since I didn't have to leave the house to go to school, I didn't really leave much at all. For the first few years of my life, I was entirely content with cleaning house, playing guitar, and blogging right inside the comforts of my own little abode. But after finishing my junior year still cooped up inside my room, I told Mother it was time for a change. Following many late-night arguments, begs and pleadings, and a whole lot of online research, Mother and I settled on signing me up for Disney Academy, the prestigious boarding school where she could keep a close eye on me as the new Home Ec. teacher.

Now here I am, trying desperately to find my room as other students bump past on the way to the "Welcome Back" party in the Dining Hall. I tap someone's shoulder as they pass, but she keeps walking, totally unaware of my presence. "Um, can you help me?" I ask to another, but she seems busy talking to her friend. In indignation and quite a bit of frustration, I drop my bags with a huff. "Alright, somebody please help me!"

Someone must hear me because they start chortling. I look around until I find the source of the snorting laughter and see a girl with the most unruly red hair. Her blue eyes flash in the sunlight streaming in through the stained-glass window she's standing under. "I see. You must be the new girl that we were expecting. Here." She walks over, picks up one of my heavier bags like its nothing, and totes it across the hall to the door of room number A113.

"Oh, my name is Merida, by the way." She bangs one fist against the dark wood of the door. "Violet, open up!" Another voice behind the door shouts something back, but I don't make out what she says before the door swings open. Merida chunks my bag inside, and I cringe when I hear the crunching noise it makes when it hits the ground in the room beyond her. A girl with long, dark hair and big eyes stands inside the room, and she looks rather annoyed. Merida gestures to the girl with both hands and smiles. "This here is one of my roommates, Violet Parr."

"Hi," Violet nods to me, "and your name is?"

"Oh." I push my bangs behind one ear and offer her my hand. "I'm Rapunzel. Nice to meet you, Violet." She shakes my hand. "And you too, Merida." Merida snorts and shakes my hand as well.

"Rapunzel? I'm just gunna call ya Punzie. You can call me Mer for short, and don't bother with Violet. Just call her Vi." She spreads her arms wide. "Welcome to our humble home!"

I look past her into a room that is anything but humble. What I can see from the entrance is just the common room that links four bedrooms. Mer shows me my bedroom, which is twice the size of the one I have at home, and leaves me to unpack my stuff. "Make yourself at home, Punzie. I'm sure our other roommate, Ariel, will be back sometime, but ya never know when with her."

Mer shuts the door behind her, and I can't help but wonder what a Scottish girl is doing here in the middle of Maine at Disney Academy. I fall down onto my bed and sigh, wishing that I could stay here all night and not have to meet all these new people. A moment later, Violet sticks her head in the door. "Hey, um, we're going to go ahead and head down to the party. Merida wanted to know if you'd like to walk down there with us, since you don't really know the way."

I shake my head. "I don't think I'm up for a party. Maybe some other time." Violet shrugs and closes the door. After I hear Merida shout some indiscernible good-bye, I fish around in my bags for my laptop, pull it out, and set it on my bed beside me. "Maybe I should go to the party," I mumble to myself. "I mean, it wouldn't be _so_ bad." I grab the little card from my purse, the invitation to the party. It says semi-casual wear. But what does "semi-casual" even mean? I try to think back to what Violet was wearing when she left, but I remember only her head.

My laptop screen begs me not to go, but I can't help myself. This is my first chance to really meet people. I can't turn it down now. So I grab the tote with my best clothes in it, find a semi-casual looking, light pink cocktail that is vintage, covered with lace, and falls just to the top of my knees. I pull on my strappy, brown sandals and look at myself in the long mirror attached to my closet door. My hair flows long and freely down my back, but it's looking a little ratty since I did it this morning. With deft fingers and quite a bit of practice, I weave my impossibly long hair into a thick braid that falls down to my lower back. I finish it all off with my flower barrette and walk out the door. Right into another girl.

Despite the red hair, she isn't Merida, and she certainly isn't Violet. So she must be Ariel, the almost always absent Ariel that Violet was talking about. When we collide, a purse falls out of her hands, and the contents scatter across the floor. There are all sorts of things like: kitchen utensils, used soda cans, bottle caps, and even a man's smoking pipe. "Oh!" She leaps to pick up the items and shove them back in her purse. I try to help her, but she just yanks the things from my hands as I pick them up. "Those are mine. I'm terribly sorry that I bumped into you like that. You must be the new girl, Marigold? Or was it Rose? It was some flower name, right?"

"Rapunzel," I say softly.

Ariel snorts and winks at me. "Gesundheit." She bursts into a tizzy of giggles. "Oh, that's all we need, isn't it? Another girl that's named after some plant. Hi, I'm Ariel." We both stand at the same time, and she thrusts a hand at me. I shake it timidly and wonder if all red-haired people are as sure of themselves as my two roommates are. Ariel looks me up and down. "Oh! Are you going to the party? I forgot all about it! I promised Eric that I would go!" She grabs my hands in hers and looks right into my eyes. "Please, wait just a moment, and I'll walk with you!" I nod, my mouth hanging open a little. She smiles brightly and her blue eyes glitter. "Thanks! I'll be right back!"

She rushes off into her room, and before I know it, is back in a flash, dressed in a sleeveless, sea-blue gown that shimmers all the way down to where it brushes the floor. "Come on! We'll be late!" Ariel loops her arm through one of mine and drags me to the door of our dorm. The walk there is a rush, and I can't even slow down long enough to get my bearings so that I might find this place tomorrow before we're already standing at the door, waiting to go in.

"Tickets, please." The large man at the door holds out his hand to me and Ariel. Ariel reaches inside the little purse that she brought and pulls out her ticket, but I suddenly realize that I left mine in the room.

"I'll be right back. I just have to go my ticket from my room." And before she can protest, I scamper off down the hallway. A few minutes later after walking down plenty of empty halls, I find myself completely lost and with no way to get back. "Hello? Is there anybody here? I'm a little lost." My voice echoes through the hall as I look up at the incredibly high ceilings painted with all manner of fairytales. While gazing up at the pictures on the walls, I bump right in to a young man with dark brown hair.

"Whoa there, Blondie. Watch where you're going." He places his hands on my shoulders and backs me away from where I was pressed to his chest. After a few more moments of him staring at me in curiosity and me staring at him in terror/horror, he cocks his head and smiles. "Do I know you?"

_There's a little bit of stubble on his chin, and his eyes are the color of chocolate. I like chocolate. His hair. Oh my gosh, his hair. And that smile?_ I think I squeak more than answer, "No." I clutch the purse in my hands until my knuckles turn white.

"Hey, the name's Flynn." He runs his fingers through his somewhat messy hair and smiles. "What's your name?"

"Rapunzel."

His eyebrows quiver for a moment, but the smile never fades. "I'll just stick with, Blondie." He takes a deep breath. "I don't know how you ended up in the boy's dormitory hall, but may I just say, you look stunning in that dress. Do you model?"

I give him a questioning look, and suddenly, I start to wonder if maybe I was better off lost. "Um, no?"

He nods and looks me up and down as if appraising me as Ariel, Merida, and Violet did earlier. "You should. Is there anything I can help you with, Blondie? I mean anything?"

I swallow hard and try to look determined and confident like Merida. "I'm lost, and I need someone to show me how to get back to my room. After that, you can show me to the Dining Hall."

"Blondie," he says as he puts his arm across my shoulder, "that sounds delightful. So, let me tell you about the time I stole Merida's bow…" As he shows me to my room, he regales me with the hilarious tale of how he took my roommates bow, the kind you shoot arrows with and not the one that you put in your hair apparently, but when we reach the door to my room, Flynn puts a hand in front of me before I can enter. "Hey, Blondie. Who says we have to go to that party anyway? We can slip out and go see a movie or something."

I wasn't sure what "or something" meant, but I had a bad feeling that this wasn't going to end well. Mother told me about the dangers of being around men, and I had decided to stay away from them as much as possible. Flynn had seemed alright until right now when he kept trying to wrap his arms around me. So, I do the sensible thing and whack Flynn in the head with my purse as hard as I can. Flynn falls backwards and lands on his butt. "What on Earth do you have in that purse? A frying pan?"

I slam the door to the room shut behind me, and a few minutes later, I hear him stand and leave, grumbling about that being the fourth time this week. Once he's gone, I slide down the door and heave a sigh. This is shaping up to be a horrible first day. Something crashes in one of the rooms, and then Merida emerges from behind the door that must lead to her dorm. "Punzie? When I came back to change shoes, you weren't still in your room. Did you just get here?" I don't answer.

Merida, clad in a high-low, red plaid skirt and white blouse, plops down on the floor next to me. "What's wrong?" I explain to her the whole story of meeting Ariel, forgetting my ticket, and meeting Flynn. Merida nods along with the story and groans when I mention Flynn's name. "That's Flynn Rider alright. I'd stay away from him if I were you, Punzie. He's trouble, always getting caught for stealing and such. He's broken the heart of nearly every girl in the Academy. You'd do well to avoid him." She finishes lacing up her black, combat boots. "Shall we be off then?"

I smile at her and nod. "Just let me get my ticket, ok?" Once I'm back with the ticket in hand, Merida opens the door, and we walk to the Dining Hall, slower this time so that I can get a good look at the place. "So did Flynn really steal your bow?"

Merida snorts. "Oh, yeah. He regrets doing that, mind you. I taught him a lesson he'll have a hard time forgetting. Posted pictures of him everywhere, but I used Photoshop to make his nose look all wrong. He's got something about that nose of his that I'll never understand, but he left me alone after that." Mer laughs and shakes her head, as if remembering the incident fondly. "That was a hoot."

We hand our tickets to the man at the door, and he ushers us in. The party started an hour ago, so everything is in full swing when we enter. The music pounds in my head and chest and many of the people around me sing along loudly. Almost everyone at Disney Academy seems to have three things: the ability to sing, the ability to dance, and very nice clothes to do all this in. Merida nods her head along with the beat but only murmurs the words. When she sees me glancing around nervously, she grabs my hand, pulls me along, and starts introducing me to people.

Everything seems to be going great until, out of the blue, all the lights and the music shut off. There is almost no light to filter in through the giant windows at this time of night, and a chill settles around the room. Then, a single spotlight turns on the stage at one of the far ends of the room. A lone figure, a boy, stands in the spotlight with a microphone in hand. His hair is glistening white, and he wears simple jeans and a blue hoodie. "Hello, Disney. My name is Jack Frost, and we're crashing your party."


	2. Crime and Punishment

Principal Haddock looks down at us with a cold glare. Snotlout, Tuffnut, Fishlegs, Jack Frost, and I sit in the tiny, wooden desks that sit across from the principal's desk in the detention room. DreamWorks High is usually so laid back that the detention room is hardly ever used, but what we did last night, that was a bit extreme. Even the lax rules of DW High are against breaking and entering. Principal Haddock, who practically has his own zip code, gets up from the giant leather chair and saunters over to my desk. He doesn't say a word, but his eyes speak volumes. _I am disappointed in you. You let me down. They were outraged. What am I supposed to do with you?_

He sighs and holds his hands behind his back. "Boys, you know that here at DreamWorks High, we have a very relaxed set of rules. We do everything we possibly can to make our students feel comfortable in the a learning environment. But there are still lines to cross, and last night, one of those lines was crossed." He stands at the back of the room now, but I can still feel his eyes boring into the back of my skull. "Now I know that we have had a long-standing rivalry with Disney Academy, and it provides for a fair amount of enjoyable competition. This is just another part of high school, but crashing a party? Throwing their student body into turmoil? Spray-painting their Head Mistress's car? There are some things that even I cannot tolerate. You acted like… like hooligans, and I will not stand for it." He begins to pace towards the front of the office, and I can feel his disappointment when he walks by. "Therefore, I'm sorry to say that there must be some form of punishment. And, since the flood that happened last month, there have been many stray animals to be rescued. The animal shelter in Burgess needs volunteers to keep up with the incoming animals, so you will work there, helping out in any way you can, until I say that you have done enough to make up for the trouble you've caused."

The other boys groan and moan, but I don't let a single sound escape my mouth. I know that out of all of us, even if this wasn't my idea, I'm the one who's in the most trouble. Principal Haddock sits down in his leather chair again. "You are dismissed." We all leap up, me especially. "Except you, son." The other boys grin and look at me. I fall back into the desk with a sigh. _I'm so dead._

As Jack leaves, he salutes me with grin. "Good luck, Hicc. I'll keep Astrid company for you." I throw a pencil at him, and he scurries out the door.

Everyone at DW knows that Principal Stoick Haddock is my dad, so I've gotten used to being teased about it when people see how scrawny I am compared to my dad, who was the star football player of his day. I'll never be remembered as anything more than the guy they call when the school Wi-Fi goes down, but my dad and everyone else who knows him, still wishes that I could've followed in my dad's footsteps. But after I stopped picking up weight when I was twelve, people tossed out that notion with the trash.

Dad sits there, stroking his unruly, red beard and looking down at me. "Son, I don't know what else to do. You keep hanging around those kids, and all they ever do is get you into trouble. Son… you… you used to be such a good boy. Sure you always had your head in the clouds, but you never got into this kind of trouble before. Hiccup, I know that you have a good mind. You can choose for yourself, chart your own course. You don't need to follow others your whole life. I just hope you realize that sooner rather than later." Dad sighs and nods towards the door. "You… you can go now, Hiccup."

I get up from my desk, grab my laptop bag, and leave the room as quickly as possible. True to his word, Jack Frost is leaned over Astrid next to where our three lockers are. Frost is long and lanky like I am, but unlike me, he is coordinated and fast. He's the star of the school hockey team, and he's sworn to beat the Disney team this fall in the playoffs. All the girls in the school would give their left foot at a chance to be Jack's girl, but Frost is only interested in himself at the moment. "And that's how I chipped this tooth." Jack smiles, revealing all of his perfectly white teeth. "Dad paid to have it fixed, and the dentist couldn't believe how white these babies are."

Astrid punches Jack in the shoulder. "Get over yourself, Frost. That self-centered attitude is really unappealing." Astrid flips her blonde hair over one shoulder and slams her locker door shut, and when she sees me approaching, she gives me "that look". The look that made Snotlout cry in third grade. _Oh this is perfect. Not only is my dad mad at me, but now Astrid is wants to kill me, too._ "I thought you said that you'd be at the library last night to study with me. And then I hear that you've been crashing an Academy party? I thought you were better than that, Hiccup." She slings her bag over her shoulder.

"Wait! No, no, no. Astrid, please let me explain." I grab her arm, but when she gives me "that look" again, I drop my hand from her arm. She stays, though, to let me beg for her forgiveness. "Last time Jack asked me to go somewhere with him, I told him no, and he made me promise that the next place he asked me to go with him, I had to say yes. So I had no choice."

Astrid raises an eyebrow at Jack who nods at her, confirming my story. Instead of saying something like "I forgive you" or even "Don't let it happen again", Astrid just pulls my phone from the pocket of my jeans and holds it up for me to see. "You see this, Hiccup? It's a phone. A phone can call or send messages to people to tell them things. You can tell them all sorts of things. You can even tell them when you have a change of plans. It's a considerate thing to do." She sticks the phone back into my pocket. "See you guys later." She turns and leaves this time, and I can't help feeling a little glad.

Jack slings an arm around my shoulders. "Don't take it too hard, bud. Astrid is a mystery to us all." Frost backs off after a moment. "Look, man. I'm really sorry about what happened. I didn't mean to make your dad mad at you, but if you don't get out there and do crazy things, then you'll never figure out who you are."

Above us the tone sounds for us to go to the Assembly Hall. Jack and I fall into step with all the other students walking by. Guy, mine and Jack's roommate, runs up to us. "Hey, did you hear about all the new students? Someone said that we've got a whole bus-load outside. Nobody knows why." Guy looks around at the crowd that passes by. "And have either of you seen Eep? She said something about meeting up with Thunk, but she never came back."

"Hey!" Eep jumps onto Guy's back. "What are you guys talking about?" Guy wraps his arms around her legs, supporting her as we trump down the hall.

Jack runs his hands through his white hair. "We're talking about the bus of new kids outside. You know anything?" Frost can hardly stand being around Eep. It's not that he doesn't like Eep, most everyone does, but he can't stand that she doesn't care about him at all. The only guy that catches Eep's eyes is Guy, and Frost just isn't used to that at all. "I bet you know something. You know something about everything that happens around here."

It's true. Eep is as curious as they come, and she's excellent at learning every bit of gossip that there is crawling around the depths of DW. Eep wiggles her eyebrows at Jack and me. "Oh, yes. I know _everything_ about that. You are going to love this." She taps Guy's shoulder, and he releases her. Eep squirms her way in between me and Jack. "They're from another school! It burned down just the other week, and now they all are coming to school here instead. I've never even heard of the school, but Disney wouldn't accept them. So here they are!" Eep spreads her arms wide as we walk through the doors into the Assembly Hall which is just one big room with a stage and a bunch of little tables that have chairs encircling them. We find an empty table near the door, and sit down.

Guy taps his fingers on the table while I doodle in one of my notebooks. Eep won't quit fidgeting, so I stop trying to draw her and try for Jack instead, who is staring at the stage. We wait a full ten minutes after everyone has been seated for my dad to lumber up on stage and stand behind the podium. "Good afternoon students, today I have a very important announcement. A few weeks ago, Fox High School had an unfortunate fire that consumed the entire school. Since they haven't had enough time to rebuild, they sent their students to us, so starting tomorrow, the students of Fox High will be joining you in your classes. They will be staying in the dorms on campus, and the new rooming lists will be posted outside the doors after assembly. Please check to see if you have anyone joining you in your rooms and welcome them as best you can." Dad shuffles some papers. "Also, starting next week, we'll be having try-outs for the hockey team along with auditions for this year's school production of _A Midsummer's Night Dream_. Now, there is something special about this year's production. I had a chat with the Head Mistress from Disney Academy," the crowd erupts into boos and hisses. Dad clears his throat, and they all quiet down. "She feels it would be best that we join forces for this performance so actors and actresses from both schools will participate." He gives us all a stern glare, daring us to make a noise. "That is all. You are dismissed."

People flood out of the Assembly Hall faster than I've ever seen before. We're all eager to find out if we have a new roommate or not. Jack, Guy, and I were due for another roommate anyway since we've only got three guys in a room made for four, so I'm pretty sure that when we show up at the dorm, there will be some Fox kid that we'll have to welcome in with open arms. We don't even bother to check the roster on our way to our room.

"I bet five bucks that the guy is going to be a total slob." Jack holds the five dollar bill in the air above his head. Guy takes him up on the bet, but I like keeping what little money I have. So I opt out. We say good-bye to Eep as she shrieks and races to her room. "Why is she so excited to have a new roommate? The less people in a dorm the better. More space."

Guy shrugs his shoulders and watches after her longingly as she goes. "She's kind of used to sharing small spaces with other people, so I guess it's kind of weird for her to be sharing a room with just Astrid and Ruffnut, especially since six people can fit into the girls' dorms."

We head to the room, and Guy pulls out his key. But the door swings open first. Inside, someone is cranking up the music on our stereo. The guy is throwing socks into one of the drawers that is tucked under the vacant bed that is now no longer vacant, and when he sees us he nods to us. "The name's Nod. Nice to meet you!" He offers us a hand. "I'm your new roommate. This place is a mess. You mind if I clean up a bit?"

Behind me, I hear Jack groan and hand the five dollars over to a brightly smiling Guy. "No," Guy says, "we don't mind a bit. Just make yourself at home. I'm Guy. This is Jack and Hiccup." As he says our names, he slings an arm around our shoulders. "This is going to be so much fun."

Jack snorts. "Yeah, right. I know fun, and this isn't it." He lowers his voice a little so that Nod can't hear us. "Fun is when we could pile our stuff on the extra bed. Fun is when we could use the extra bed as a couch. Fun is when we didn't have a neat freak for a roommate."

"Sorry," Nod chimes in, obviously overhearing the conversation. "I was raised in a military home, so I like to keep things neat and tidy. At least you guys aren't total slobs. My last two roommates, Mub and Grub, were. I swear, I've never seen two guys who were more gross." All this time, Nod is making his bed. The guy can straighten out wrinkles in his sheets like a machine.

Jack picks up a dart off the floor and chucks it at the bull's-eye on the wall farthest from the door. "If you guys really want some fun, I know something we can do."

Guy and Nod's ears perk up, but I know that this isn't going to be good. "No, Jack. We just got in trouble. Let's not do anything stupid again."

Jack looks at me with that gleam in his eyes, and I know that there's no stopping him now. "So, we crashed their party the other night which was cool and all, but tonight, we're going to break in and steal the hockey team's equipment right out of their ice rink. Let's see how well they play without pucks or sticks." Frost steps over to retrieve his dart from where it stuck into the wall. "What do you say?"

Nod looks like he's all on board, and Guy is practically drooling at the thought of doing something dangerous. And then there's me, the one who always gets dragged into these stupid things because I hang out with the wrong people. "Da, da, da," I sing. "We're dead."


	3. Target Practice

I dunk the sponge into the soapy water again and start scrubbing the side of my mum's car. "I don't see why _I_ have to clean the paint off of your car, Mum. I didn't even do it this time." My hair falls down into my face again, and I grab the hair band from my wrist to pull my curls back.

Mum scratches at the blue paint on the windshield with her finger. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something, dear. The school play is coming up, and as you know, we'll be working with DreamWorks High this year. I think that you should try out for a part. It should be fun."

I wrinkle up my nose. "And have to hang around a bunch of DreamWorks Delinquents? No thank you. I'll stick with after-school archery practice. Mr. Barton says I'll win at the championship for sure."

Mum sighs and shakes her head. "Merida, you should pursue more ladylike electives. This year's production is of _A Midsummer's Night Dream_. It'll be lovely! I insist that you try out for a part." Mum hands me a copy of the script, and I wipe my hands on my jean shorts before I take it. "Merida, you are a young lady. Every young lady should have a chance to perform on the stage. And who knows, you might actually make some friends if you try it."

I roll my eyes. "Oh, Mum! I have friends! My roommates are my friends. There's Ariel, and Violet, and the new girl Rapunzel. They're not so bad." I scrub the last of the paint off of the car, or as much as I can manage, and then toss the sponge back into the bucket. Mum is glaring at me over her glasses, and I get the feeling that I'm not getting out of this one no matter how much I complain. "Fine, I'll try it, but you know that Kuzco likes to micromanage things. He may not even want me in his stupid play."…

He claps his hands together to get our attention, and we all turn our gazes to the stage. "Alright ladies. DreamWorks High says that we have first pick at half of the main characters, and I decided that we would provide them with the best leading ladies this side of the country." Kuzco or The Drama Emperor, as he likes to be called, struts across the stage like a peacock. "Therefore, the auditions for Hermia and Helena will be held first. Then you may try out for any other parts you wish." He motions for the two freshmen standing around the stage behind him to hand out the scripts.

Rapunzel nudges me in the shoulder. "I didn't know that you would be here. This doesn't really seem like your… thing." She bites her top lip as she starts to flip through the script.

I shrug my shoulders and find the page for the audition for Hermia, who Mum insisted I audition for. "I'm a deep well, Punzie. You'll be surprised what all I can do." I start skimming the page and instantly feel sick. _What if I don't get the part? Mum will be _so_ disappointed_. "What part are you auditioning for, Rapunzel?"

She looks down at the script. "I'd like to be Helena, but I'm not sure if I'm good enough."

I snort. "Trust me. Kuzco will tell you whether you're good enough or not."

Ten minutes later, most of the girls have returned to their seats crying or giving Kuzco dirty looks. Rapunzel climbs up the steps and brushes off her pink skirt. "I'll be trying out for the part of Helena." She opens her mouth to start the audition, but Kuzco rushes onto the stage.

"No, no, no! Don't say a word! You're perfect!" He snaps a picture of her with his camera and then fingers her blonde hair. "You must be the most beautiful girl in school! You'll be perfect for the role of Hermia!"

My jaw drops and so does hers. "But I was going to try out for Helena…"

Kuzco shushes her. "Helena is questioning herself and her beauty, but you are too beautiful to play such a part." He turns and looks over the rest of us sitting in the audience, staring up at them with wide eyes. Kuzco scans the crowd of people who haven't performed for him yet. His eyes land on me like a pair of spotlights. "You. You'll be Helena." He points his long, brown finger in my direction, and I can already feel my mum's disappointment…

"Merida!"

My combat boots slap the floor in a rush as I try to outrun Punzie, but she clears the distance between us in moments. _She can sing, dance, paint, act, _and _run track? She's just too perfect._ "Go away! I don't want to talk right now!" My quiver and bow hug my back, and I know that if I don't get to the archery range soon to blow off some steam, Punzie might have to dodge some arrows. "Don't try to talk to me when I'm armed and angry."

Rapunzel rests her hand on my shoulder and spins me around. "I didn't try to steal the part from you. I didn't even know you wanted it that bad, but no one can say no to Kuzco when he's made up his mind. Please, he still gave you a really important part. Don't be mad at me over this." Her green eyes are so full of all kinds of emotions that I can't even look into them without feeling guilty for getting upset with her so quickly.

I knock her hand off my shoulder. "Look, Punzie. You seem sweet, and maybe we can be friends. But you've got to learn when to leave me alone, and right now is one of those times." I shove my backpack into her hands. "Here, want to make it up to me? Take this back to our room and leave the door open for me. I'll be back before dark… maybe."

I spin around on my heel and stomp off down the hall. Mr. Barton is cleaning up from his after-school practice. "Hey, Mer. Where were you today? I thought we were going to practice for the state finals." He unbuttons his purple vest and leans against a pear tree. "You know they'll be coming up in a few weeks."

I look down and see his sunglasses lying next to a hay bale we sometimes use for shot practice. I hand them to him, and he slides them on without a word. "I know, I know, but my mum wanted me to audition for the school play."

Barton raises an eyebrow at me. "You were trying out for the school play? The one with DreamWorks High?" He sounds disgusted. "Your mom is a great Head Mistress, but I'll never understand why she wants you to be a lady when you can be the best archer in the country. You know, aside from me." I'm sure he winks at me through his sunglasses, but I can't tell for sure. "Well, I'm out of here. Natasha called and needs me to help her interrogate Stark. This should be fun." Barton jogs over to the trail where he parks his motorcycle. "See ya kid!"

I wave as he roars off. Then, I shrug my bow and quiver off of my shoulders and walk over to the range. At first, I start slow and easy, trying to focus, but before I know it, arrows are flying from the string faster than I've ever shot before. Sweat starts to accumulate on my brow, but I don't bother to wipe it away as I retrieve my arrows and start again. Darkness creeps up on me, and soon, I can hear crickets chirping over the sound of the arrows hitting their targets.

My arms drop to my sides as I suddenly feel exhausted. Then I hear something, the sound of bodies approaching from inside the woods. Something makes me hide behind the supply shack that we keep the targets and extra arrows in. The people, whoever they are, reach the clearing of the archery range, and I peek at them around the corner of the shack. One of them has white hair that glistens like snow in the moonlight. It's the boy from the dance, the DreamWorks kid who crashed the party. There a three others with him who all have dark hair and ruddy skin. Snow boy looks out of place among the others, but he also seems to be the leader. They all look to him for their next move.

"Where is the hockey ring anyway?" One of them asks.

Snow boy motions to the left of the dorm building behind me. "It's over there. We can slip in if we don't get in sight of the dormitory windows."

My fingers find their way around the shaft of an arrow. Without thinking, I notch it in the bow and wait for them to make a move. Snow boy takes a step forward so I throw myself around the side of the shack and fire near his feet. When the arrow sinks into the ground, he leaps back with a yelp. They all look up at me with gaping mouths. Then they practically trip over each other trying to get away. "Whoa, she's crazier than Eep!" I pursue them into the woods even though I'm out of arrows.

Three of them, including Snow boy, get away from my pretty quickly, but another, who seems to favor his right leg, struggles to run through the underbrush. He trips and falls, grunting when he hits the dirt. I step towards him, and he turns to sit down instead of laying there, face down. He looks up at me with moss-green eyes that barely glow in the darkness of the forest. "Who… who are you anyway?"

I tilt my head up and look down on him. "I am Merida DunBroch. My mother is the Headmistress here, and I suggest that you and your friends don't come back. Ever." My grip on my bow tightens, and I wish that I had another arrow to chase him away with. His eyes are starting to get to me.

He offers me a hand. "I'm Hiccup Haddock. My dad is the Principal at DreamWorks High."

At first, I'm not sure what to do, but then I take his hand and help him up. "What were you doing here tonight anyway, Hiccup?" His name feels odd in my mouth.

Once he gets to his feet, he brushes himself off a little. I look him over. He seems to be about eighteen and is a little scrawny for his age, but he's got some slight stubble on his chin that gives away his age. His hair is shaggy and brown with little braids here and there. And those eyes stay locked on mine. "My friends thought it would be funny to steal some of the hockey team's supplies… You won't tell anyone will you? I'm already in trouble with my dad. I don't want to disappoint him even more than I already have." He groans and hangs his head.

I swallow hard and look around for the rest of his friends, but they seem to have abandoned him. "No, I guess I won't. You didn't actually steal anything. But just promise that you won't do anything like this again, agreed?"

He looks up at me and smiles crookedly. "Agreed, and thanks, Merida."

I put up a hand. "Don't bother. Just go."

He turns and begins to walk back in the direction that the others disappeared in. He still favors his right legs, and then I see it. His left leg from the knee down is a metal prosthetic. This boy with the bad leg and the weird name and the striking eyes. I shake my head, trying not to think too hard about him and his friends… and him. I wander back to the archery range and gather my arrows, including the one I shot at Snow boy's feet. I put it and the rest into my quiver and head back to my room. Rapunzel has left the door unlocked for me, and it seems that they are all still at diner in the Dining Hall, which is fine by me because right now, I still just want to be alone.

**Please comment and review!**

**And just wait for Jack's chapter...**


End file.
